UTMB - DNF....

So, what was the story of my UTMB race 2009? Well, the bottom line is that I DNF’d (Did Not Finish). Not only that, I DNF’d after no more than 20 of the 103 miles and after completing just one of the 10 significant ‘hills’. Still, it was an interesting experience and in a wonderful place, so I’m left just wanting to go back.

The story. After a week chilling out on the shores of Lake Annecy we turned up in Chamonix in glorious afternoon sunshine (temperature in the high 20s) and relaxed while we waited for the 6.30 pm race start.

Chamonix was naturally very bust with a real party atmosphere and the whole town turning out to wave the runners off and shout out encouragement.

Feeling good at the start and ready to go

The race start is actually quite narrow, so with over 2,300 runners the start was slow (more of a stroll out of town), but after about 5 or 10 minutes everyone was able to start running. The first section of gently undulating trails through the woods leading out of Chamonix was very easy and it was good to be underway.

Chamonix town centre at the race start

I’d allowed about 58 minutes for this first section and arrived almost bang on time in Les Houches. I grabbed a couple of cokes (colas..) here and then set off up the hill, waiting a while to find a spot off the track to get the poles out. Then started the first climb of the race, rising over 2,500 ft to the top of Le Charme at nearly 6,000 ft. And this is also when it all started to go wrong.......

I felt good to start with and the pace was steady (still lots of people around you) but I started to sweat profusely – it was becoming difficult to grip my walking poles (I could see the whole of the poles glistening with sweat) and I noticed that even my shoes were changing colour as they became wet.

Slowly I also noticed I was falling off the pace with those around me but just decided to stick to my own pace and not to worry about anyone else.

However, I was also starting to feel tired and my leg muscles were complaining (defiantly NOT normal so early into a long race). I stopped a few times to drink, take on some food and take a few photos – glad I did as I got to see Mont Blanc appear in a break in the cloud. I was also aware of a tightening in my chest and some constraint on my breathing – was it the altitude?, the cold mountain air?, I just didn’t know.

Mont Blanc making a brief appearance above Les Charme

By the top of the climb I was really out of sorts, I was very wet, feeling cold and very low on energy. Anyway, I put on my arm warmers and gillet for the descent and started the long (3,250 ft) drop down into St Gervais. The drop was surprising steep and for what seemed like forever you could see the lights of the town below.

Despite now being on flat and downhill trails I had no energy to run so just plodded steadily on down hill (conscious that lots of people seemed to be travelling much faster than me) and eventually arrived in to St Gervais to a real party atmosphere – lots people lining the streets and lots sitting out at pavement cafes and restaurants (how much did I want to join them at that point!).

At the feed station I found a wall to collapse onto and contemplate what to do next. I really wanted to stop and indeed saw plenty of runners seeking medical attention, but it seemed so early in the race and after so much preparation. I sent a text to Pamela to let her now I was ‘struggling’, filled up my water bottles, found some coke and then some tea to drink and made my way through the feed station to continue.

Just as I was leaving I bumped into two runners I’d met doing the MdS, Annabel and James. They were not complementary about how ‘ill’ I looked!! and, in comparison they looked as fresh as daisies (Annabel was to make it through till morning, James did a very creditable half way – well done both of you!). We chatted for a while then set of for Les Contamines but they were soon away and out of sight.

I decided to keep going (knowing that the next 6 mile section was largely ‘flat', climbing ‘only’ 1,350 ft – originally this was one section that in my race plans I would try and run as much as possible). In the event, I trudged slowly through the night.

It now became very quiet on the trial and, at times, I could see no runners ahead or behind. I actually quite enjoyed this solitude, but my general physical state was not getting any better. I was OK on the flat, but any climbing was an effort., I also felt very dehydrated despite having taken on far more liquid than usual this early in, eating was also a problem as my mouth was so dry I couldn’t chew any solid food without drinking at the same time.

Eventually I arrived at Les Contamines, but now well down on schedule and only 30 minutes inside the cut off time. After the party atmosphere of St Gervais, Les Contamines was a bit eerie, about 12.30 at night and just a few sad looking runners wandering about – most it turned out having, or about to, pack it all in.

After finding more tea and sitting on the pavement I texted Pamela to say ’I don’t know what to do!’. In truth I did know what to do, STOP. But, it’s hard to make that decision and the pull to keep going to the next checkpoint was quite strong. So, in order to remove myself from the decision I ventured into the first aid station. There a doctor checked me over, pronounced that basically I was OK, but the breathing was a bit rattly and said the words I really did want to hear; ‘I think your race is over’ (in a French accent of course!).

Just then Pamela phoned. Spookily she’d woken and decided to check her phone for messages just after I’d sent my text.

Obviously I wasn’t happy to be bailing out, but I knew it was the right thing to do. Next followed the logistics of getting back to Chamonix, of Pamela and Emma getting back into France from Italy and my drop bag return from Cormayeur. This saw us watching CCC runners finishing at 3 am in Chamonix centre, breathing in the smell of fresh baking in the square, and then spending the rest of the night sleeping in the gymnasium on camps beds with a load of UTMB drop outs and CCC fast finishers!

Me and Emam sleeping in the gymnasium!

The next day we returned to Annecy and then enjoyed a couple of ‘bonus' days holiday. I also started to think about next year and the plan now is to enter the CCC – the 56 mile race that covers the second half of the UTMB route. The thinking behind is that, one, its shorter, so if it is altitude or heat and humidity that my body can’t cope with, then I might still be able to finish this race. Two, if I do drop out again say, after 6 hours, I’ll have seen some fantastic scenery in daylight (the race starts at 10 am as opposed to 6.30 pm) and three, if I complete then I‘ll be ready for UTMB and will have seen three quarters of the route.

Oh, and ‘fourthly’, we get to holiday in the Alps again, maybe heading down to the Italian lakes. Roll on August 2010!

Foot note: a final mention needs to go to everyone who sponsored me in this venture. I ‘m sorry I didn’t manage to complete, but thank you for your support. I raised over £300 (once you add in Gift Aid!) for Children Today and even got some publicity with a piece in the Bradford Telegraph and Argus!